Roof Top Tents

Submitted: Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 10:15
ThreadID: 117045 Views:3312 Replies:8 FollowUps:3
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It's probably been done to death, but I'm considering them and have a question of what appears to be two types, being open entrance verses closed entrance as per these two links;
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/New-Camper-Roof-Top-Tent-Camping-4WD-4X4-rooftop-Tents-Canvas-/281596522705?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_15&hash=item419075f0d1 open entrance
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/G-CAMP-1-4m-ROOF-TOP-TENT-CAMPER-TRAILER-4WD-4X4-CAMPING-CAR-RACK-EXT-/111166143814?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_15&hash=item19e204bd46 closed entrance

To those people who have RTT's would you care to comment on what type yours is and the comfort/convenience versus the dis-comfort/un-convince factors.

Thanks for your time and comments.
Rod
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Reply By: Mick O - Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 11:02

Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 11:02
Rod I used one of the ARB - Pilbara tents for many years. They are great and I loved mine. Tthe tsunami of chinese made copies onto the market has bought the price right down.

The fabric on these are a poly-cotton type stuff not the cotton canvas of old. I purchased one of these to outfit Scott and Gaby's 100 series last year.

For the money they are fine. The upside is that camp set up is a lot easier, you are off the ground. Only down side is they can sway a bit in strong winds so make sure you point the nose of the tent appropriately when setting up.

A few pieces of advice. Make sure the ladder supplied is the same as the aluminium one in the pictures provided. Many come with a telescoping pole ladder (about 8 sections that slide into each other) that are a pain in the proverbial. You need the two piece sliding ladder as pictured. Makes set up and pack up a breeze.

If I was purchasing another tent such as this for myself, I would go with the one with the extended fly over the ladder. This gives you a bit more privacy and shelter from the elements when required. You can also strap a screen room to it when in caravan parks/campgrounds etc for privacy and shelter during inclement weather.

Get a large, closed cell foam mat and put it under the mattress. They are about $20 at most good camping retailers This will help with insulation and prevent condensation

In the photo below, note the telescoping ladder. This is the one you DON'T want.





Cheers Mick


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Follow Up By: Member - Colin E - Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 11:18

Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 11:18
Agree with Mick
Love mine with the rear annexe permenantly attached I had to add a length of keder track to the folding side
It always drops down when setting up and makes a good kitchen and privacy when dressing then just throw it up on top when packing up
Takes 40 minutes to pack up but 25 minutes of that is packing kitchen and chairs etc
I have been in high winds with it all good and can open windows on a hot night to get a breeze
Mine is South African made tent from eBay one of the early ones on there
Colin
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Reply By: KOR - Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 12:11

Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 12:11
We have had a howling moon rooftop tent for well over 10 years now. It has been well used, including trips to Cape York, Victorian High country, and various places up and down the eastern side of Australia. It is still looks almost brand new on the inside, albeit we probably need to think about replacing the cover. We don't like to mess about with our camping gear and we do use it for the purpose it is intended. It's tough. It has stood up well in some pretty windy/dusty/wet/cold/hot conditions. We would definitely recommend this as a purchase over the thinner cheaper versions.

I think we have the tourer version that you can zip a lower tent into. We also have a sort of extension to the entrance which means when I'm getting out of bed in the morning and turning around to go down the ladder I'm not mooning the rest of the campsite. Mind you, you can get the roof topper into more remote places than you can get say a camper trailer. You are off the ground, and they tend to catch nice breezes when it is hot. It's convenient, taking only a genuine couple of minutes to set up or pack up. The grandkids love the "cubby house". We have a mattress that doesn't need blowing up. You can get to camp sites quicker as you are not towing.

Inconveniences we have noticed are. If you want to go on a day trip away from your campground then you need to pack it up. If you are likely to need to go to the loo in the middle of the night you have to go up and down a short ladder, or put a port-a-loo on the roofrack and use it through the other removeable end (this was a marketing tool that the company used on us, mind you we have never attempted it). It's a little heavy to get off the roof of the car and so then tends to stay on the car which doesn't fit in the garage. Fuel consumption is a little higher due to the height of the tent.

If you get one, get a good quality one that is going to last the distance.

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Reply By: get outmore - Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 12:29

Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 12:29
youve still got your troopy MK2?

not a cheap option but have you though about making it a pop top?
i bought one a while ago and the upstairs bed is great.only thing is the mattress cushions are a bit thin so im going to look into putting a thin self inflating matress - pretty sure theres enough room with the top down although i probabally wont be able to leave the sleeping bag and pillow up there then
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Reply By: Member - John - Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 13:54

Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 13:54
G'day, only had the closed entrance RTT, found it to be very good, as the others say a bit more privacy. With a bit of thinking, you can utilise a couple of tent poles attached underneath the floor to hold the extension out, so no poles and ropes to walk into on the way to the loo in the dark. Agree about the ladder, makes it easy to open and close the tent with the two piece ladder. Mine is a South African one, very well made and robust available on Ebay from Melbourne. One thing I would suggest is a set of "Bonking Bars", to stabilise the whole shebang. Can't add pics or links using the tabs below, so please follow the link. http://liveimages.quicksales.com.au/quicksales/general/classified/gc5269624888535689221.jpg?width=830&aspect=fitwithin&padcolor=ffffff
John and Jan

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Reply By: Hoyks - Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 14:44

Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 14:44
Get the covered entrance one.
If it is raining, then you can get into and out of the tent without that 1st cold dribble of water running down your bum crack. It also gives you somewhere to dry to store your boots and hang jackets, towels etc. that is out of the rain.

Personally, I'd go through a bricks and mortar store for something like this. I have bought a lot of stuff from eBay because it is cheap. The one time I bought an expensive item it crapped its self after 8 months and by then the company didn't exist any more.

This is where I got mine and it is great. http://www.austrackcampers.com.au/roof-top-tents/

A good mod (that I have yet to do) is get some shock cord and ute cover loops and stretch the shock cord around the under side of the floor. Instant clothes line/towel rack.
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Follow Up By: Hoyks - Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 14:57

Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 14:57
That 1st ad, I wouldn't touch it as they have stolen a photo from Open Sky to advertise their clone.

The description;
"NOTE: We only supply the latest models. item may vary from some images shown." actually means we don't actually sell this tent, but one that looks a bit like it.
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Follow Up By: AlbyNSW - Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 15:12

Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 15:12
I have an Austrack one as well and happy with it.

As others have said, I would definitely go the covered doorway style model
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Reply By: Member - Cuppa - Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 15:50

Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 15:50
You may or may not be interested in the Shippshape rooftop tent I have just advertised, but if you check it out in the classified section you’ll see there is a link to a photo album. As well as plenty of photos of the tent set up in a variety of ways, some of the info I included below the photos may be of inteest when it comes to choosing the tent which is right for you.

Regards
Cuppa
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Reply By: Angryz - Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 19:18

Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 19:18
I have a Tigerz11 with the cover over the ladder & absolutely love it! If Im only staying a single night then moving on to another camp it is excellent. If staying somewhere for more than a couple of nights or taking the family I take the camper trailer instead. As stated by others don't get one with the collapsable ladder as they are Spain in the butt!
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Reply By: Idler Chris - Vic - Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 21:07

Friday, Mar 13, 2015 at 21:07
Your right it has been done to death. Go here and all will be revealed.
http://www.exploroz.com/Members/261669.250/2/2015/Roof_Top_Tents__RTT_.aspx
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